


I will be here, don't you cry

by Rehearsal_Dweller



Series: Learning Normal, Finding Home [16]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Multi, there are deaths but nothing tragic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-19
Updated: 2015-01-19
Packaged: 2018-03-08 06:34:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3199046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rehearsal_Dweller/pseuds/Rehearsal_Dweller
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Children grow, things change, and people die. But life moves on, and on, and on.</p>
<p>(Alternatively: what to do when your family ages, but you'll be a teenager for all eternity.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	I will be here, don't you cry

**Author's Note:**

> I felt bad for leaving off on the note I did and then never updating again. So here's a glimpse of the future of this 'verse, in four segments that jump ahead in time.
> 
> Since this is the end of the series, I'd like to request one thing: whether you've just read this series in one go or you've been steamed at me for four months because I killed off Ellis and then stopped posting, please leave me a note and tell me what you think of this series. It's been a lot of fun to write, and it'd be nice to know that other people enjoyed it, too.

“I never expected to live long enough to have kids, let alone to see  _them_ have kids.”

Newly two-year-old Ella scrambled past, chased by her barely walking cousin Bea. Jason briefly considered scooping one of them up, but decided that they weren’t likely to get into too much trouble, as his son had had the sense to throw his toddler’s birthday party in a space that had been fairly comprehensively baby-proofed.

“Agreed,” said Nico. Liam, Hazel and Frank’s three-month-old grandchild, chose that moment to wake up and start squirming in Nico’s arms, thoroughly distracting him.

Jason sat back and looked around. The room was full to bursting with people; it seemed like Toby and his husband (Kevin) had invited everyone they’d ever met. The Jackson-di Angelos had been the last to arrive, herding Bobby’s three children and Mollie Bennett’s two.

By Jason’s count, there were at least ten children under six years old running around.

He was about to get up and go looking for Annabeth when the doorbell rang. Toby was in the kitchen dealing with the pizza and Kevin was swarmed by three-year-olds, so Jason answered it, wondering who else could possibly have been invited.

An 18-year-old girl in a silver jacket stood nervously on the front porch. She jumped when the door opened, but grinned when she realised who’d answered.

“Hey, Jason,” Marina greeted with a little wave. “Thalia’s parking the car.”

“You’re – is Thalia allowed to drive?” replied Jason.

“Technically no, but she’s only been arrested once, and that was, like, ten years ago,” said Marina. “Can I come in, or -?”

“Oh, yeah, of course.” Jason moved aside and Marina stepped inside, shrugging off her jacket. “Your parents are in the living room.”

“Thanks, Uncle Jay.”

Jason watched from the doorway as she sought out her parents. She crossed Percy’s path first, and once she had, there was no chance that Annabeth or Nico would miss her.

“Mari!” he exclaimed. “Nico, Annie, look who’s here!”

\--

“Aunt Marina?”

Marina, who had been walking toward Cabin 8 with some other Hunters, turned around, surprised. When she recognised the speaker, she grinned. “Hey! I thought you two were off being legionnaires; what are you doing here?”

“We’re on exchange!” Liam said proudly.

“Mari?” Clay, one of the Hunters, said. “Who are these  _boys_?”

“They’re my  _family_ , Clay,” replied Marina. “My nephew, Riley Jackson, and my second cousin Liam – uh, I don’t actually know Becca’s husband’s surname. But you get the idea. Boys, this is Clay. She’s a Hunter, too.”

“Nice to meet you,” said Riley.

Clay just rolled her eyes and walked away.

“So if you guys are staying the weekend, does that mean we get to play you in capture the flag?” Liam asked hopefully.

“I imagine it does,” Marina answered.

“Hey, Ri, could we get a picture to send to the family?” Riley asked. “Granddad, Grandma, and Gramps will get a kick out of it.”

“Sure, why not?”

\--

“Why do you keep letting them go to these events?” Clay snapped.

“I will allow them to leave for funerals until they stop having funerals to go to,” Artemis replied calmly.

Thalia and Marina, who had been about to step into Artemis’s tent to inform her that they’d returned, froze.

“They have as much right to see their family on occasion as you had to shun yours,” Artemis declared. “Most especially because they are saying good-bye.”

Thalia decided that that was an appropriate point to interrupt, and stuck her head into the tent. “We’re back, my lady. Thank you, again. We can only hope that it won’t happen again any time soon.”

“Indeed. I’ll need to speak to you in the morning, but for now go ahead and have dinner.”

\--

Ellis was, for at least the fourth time, listening to Luke Castellan tell the story of the time that Annabeth (at the time eight years old or so) had climbed onto the roof of the Athena Cabin and refused to come down for three days. She’d brought snacks and everything.

Annabeth sat off to the side with Percy and Nico, shaking her head and half-trying to hide her face behind her hand.

“- and it turned out that she had enlisted one of my little sisters to –“

Nico frowned, whispered something to Percy, and slipped out the door. It struck Ellis as a bit odd, but perhaps Hades needed a favour.

He’d completely forgotten about it by the time the food was ready, so when Nico reappeared at the gate, Ellis didn’t think anything of it.

Until he shouted, “Ellis! Come here, there’s someone here to see you!”

Surprised, Ellis jumped up and ran over, abandoning his burger.

Then Nico stepped aside.

“Hey, Ellie. Sorry I’m late.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for sticking around, guys.


End file.
